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M— 3089»-l <3PO 



A LECTURE 



ON THE 



IMPORTANCE OF A CHRISTIAN BASIS 



FOR THE 



SCIENCE OP POLITICAL ECONOMY, 



AND ITS APPLICATION TO 



THE AFFAIRS OF LIFE 



DELIVERED BEFORE THE 



CALVERT INSTITUTE, BALTIMORE, AND THE CARROLL INSTITUTE, PHILADELPHIA, 



It 

RT. REV. DR. HUGHES, BISHOP OF NEW YORK. 



J. WINCHESTER, NEW WORLD PRESS 

30 ANN STREET. 



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A 



i 






LECTURE. 



Political Economy professes to treat of the material wealth 
of nations, and to trace out the laws which govern and regulate 
its tendencies to increase or diminution. By material wealth, 
it would have us to understand not only the precious metals, as 
gold and silver, but all descriptions of property, having an ex- 
changeable value. Whatever substance, whether in the heavens 
above, or in the earth beneath, or in the waters under the earth, 
is consecrated to the use of mankind, by the expenditure of hu- 
man capital, or human labor, passes, ipso facto, under the scientific 
dominion of Political Economy. 

From this view it would seem, at first, impossible to take any 
adequate cognizance of a subject so vast, so complex, and so es- 
sentially variable. This is, indeed, to a great extent correct; 
and the science finds itself so often at fault, even on matters 
which it ought, by this time, to understand thoroughly, that he 
he must be a credulous man, who places implicit confidence in 
even its most elaborate conclusions. Yet, on the other hand, it is 
the special province of all science to take up, and arrange, and 
analyze, distribute and classify, under general heads, the various 
subjects which it investigates; and no matter how complicated 
may seem to be the material affairs of wealth and industry, in 
the social relations of individuals, or in the great commercial 
business of nations, the science of Political Economy has re- 
duced, from the patient study of details, certain leading princi- 
ples, according to which it has distributed the whole subject into 
special departments, which simplify questions in a manner almost 
inconceivable. True it is, that the professors of the science are 
not always agreed, as to the accuracy of its classifications, or the 
soundness of its principles. True it is, that its votaries have yet 
;to travel an immense distance, before they shall have reached 



anything like infallibility. Nevertheless, it has already furnished 
most important results. The observations and statistics, which 
it has collected and arranged, are invaluaable ; not only on ac- 
count of the points which they have elucidated, but also, and 
more, on account of the anomalies in social, as well as political, 
philosophy, which it has utterly failed to explain. 

Of its two great primary departments, the one comprises the 
inhabitants of the earth ; the other embraces the material things 
which are required, and can be supplied, for the physical suste- 
nance or enjoyment of these inhabitants. Now, it is found that 
these material things, before they can be fully prepared for the 
purposes of sustenance and pleasure, require the expenditure of 
capital, either in money, or labor, or both. Such things are 
divided into two stages of time ; the one commencing with the 
first expenditure of capital on the raw material, and ending at 
the term of expenditure, when the thing is entirely prepared, and 
passes over to its use. This comprehends all the industrial pur- 
suits and occupations of mankind ; and the whole is designated 
by the term production. The other stage begins when the ob- 
ject is applied to its use ; and this stage is called by the general 
term consumption. The latter of these terms represents the 
wants, whether real or artificial, of society ; the former desig- 
nates the supply of these wants. Population is also classed 
under two corresponding divisions ; namely, producers and con- 
sumers. 

But in general, the science has, so far, been conducted rather 
in conformity to the special interests of particular nations, than 
according to any principles of universal origin or application. 
The countries which have paid most attention to this subject, in 
a scientific point of view, are France and England; and the works 
emanating from these countries, represent very distinctly, the 
national type, according to which the study has been prosecuted. 
Hence, although there are found in their treatises, principles suppo- 
sed to be of universal application, still the actual condition of society, 
the nature of industrial pursuits, the bearing of commercial laws, 
peculiar to those countries, have come in so powerfully in modi- 
fying the views of their political economists, that their best prin- 
ciples cannot be appreciated, except by a just discrimination of 
all the circumstances, in which one nation differs from another. 

Thus, for instance, confining our remarks to England, with 
which we are better acquainted, we are met with a distribution 



of the population into classes, which are not formed in our 
own country. These are, landlords, capitalists, and laborers. 
Generally in this country, the same individual represents all three. 
He is the owner of the soil, which he cultivates ; and his means 
of carrying on agriculture, constitute his capital. The three classes 
are indeed, found ; but that which constitutes the rule in England, 
is only the exception here. It is not, perhaps, the fault of Political 
Economy, as a science, that it seems to regard wealth as the end-, 
and human beings as only the means, in order for its attainment. 
We would not venture to make this a reproach ; and yet we can- 
not help making it a subject of regret. Its writers did not create 
the science ; they only embodied a copy of its workings in prac- 
tical life, as they found it in the relations of men. The promi- 
nence which is given to wealth, in tracing out the most certain 
rules for the acquisition of it, cannot but have had an injurious 
moral effect, in so far as it enhanced the ideal value of riches in 
the estimation of the human mind. There perhaps never was a 
period, when men entered on the pursuit of wealth, with so much 
of what might be called almost desperate determination to suc- 
ceed, as the period in which we live. And we may entertain a 
reasonable doubt, whether it be not owing to this, that individuals 
in high and honorable stations, have so frequently (and of late as 
never before,) jeoparded and sacrificed an unblemished charac- 
ter, rather than miss the opportunity of rapidly acquiring wealth ; 
the means of which, circumstances and confidence had placed 
within their reach. Cupidity is a natural propensity of man ; 
and it is to be feared that the theoretic, and practical, political 
economy of our age, has encouraged and whetted the passion in- 
stead of moderating and regulating its violence. It is certain, 
that self-interest is the great motive principle of human exertion ; 
but it is equally certain, that Political Economy, as a science, 
omits what would be essential in a true definition of man's inter- 
est. Of this we shall be convinced, if we examine the moral 
principle on which, whether in the practice of modern nations, 
or in the theory of writers, Political Economy is founded. If 
we follow it up to the mysterious link which connects it with the 
spiritual or moral world, in the breast of man, we shall find that 
it acts exclusively on that of personal interest. So much so in- 
deed, that if England and France, and the nations of modern 
times, in general, instead of being Christians, or at least profess- 
ing Christianity, were Heathens, it would still be almost unneces- 

2 



6 

sary to change a single word in the actual Philosophy or ethics 
of Political Economy. Here, then, it is, that the importance of a 
Christian basis demands our attention. The advantages and disad- 
vantage of position between Landlord and Tenant — between the 
Capitalist and the Laborer, are such, that if mere material self- 
interest alone be left to regulate their relations, it is easy to fore- 
see that the weaker are liable to fall victims to the interests 
and power of the stronger. The truth of this proposition is man- 
ifest now, in the condition of England, whero these relations are, 
and have been in existence for a long time. Now, if Christianity 
were admitted as an element in Political Economy, man — human 
nature — in consideration of the value which it has acquired by 
the Redemption, would be the first and principal object of solici- 
tude, and all things else would be estimated by reference to this. 
Man's interest would be graduated on a scale proportioned to 
the whole of his nature, combining the spiritual with the corpo- 
real ; and the whole of his destiny, extending to eternity, as well 
as time. Then, indeed, self-interest thus understood, would con- 
stitute a principle sufficiently high and sufficiently ample to com- 
bine the acquisition of wealth, with sacred regard for the rights 
and privileges of human beings. But this is not the case. 
The landlords, capitalists, and laborers of England, are supposed 
to represent three great departments of capital ; the one in terri- 
tory — the other in money—and the third in muscular strength, or 
mechanical skill. Each is supposed to be free, and the only mo- 
tive which is furnished in the present system, is that of individual 
advantage. But it happens necessarily, that what would be the 
advantage of one class, is directly opposed to the interests of an- 
other; and then each adhering to the common principle, it is clear 
that he or they who have most power to hold out, will be able to 
damage or destroy the antagonist interest of the other. The in- 
fluences to be derived from a high and enlightened appreciation 
of human worth, according to the standard of revelation, seem 
to have been shut out from the practical and theoretic economy 
of modern nations. The interest of the body, in its relation with 
material wealth, limited, of course, to this present life, is the nar- 
row and ignoble sphere within which political economy affects to 
move. 

I must not proceed, however, with views of this kind, until I 
shall have anticipated an objection which has already, perhaps, 
arisen in your minds, in seeming refutation of what fc is here ad- 



vanced. And this is, that the immense wealth, the wonderful 
power, and unequalled prosperity of England, as a nation, is a 
practical proof of the soundness of her Political Economy. Or, it 
may be that an assumption, which has often been proclaimed, 
has presented itself to your mind as a yet stronger refutation, 
namely : that the wealth of England, her power and prosperity are 
owing to her profession of the Protestant religion, and the play of 
those energies which that religion is supposed to foster and devel- 
ope. Now, with the qualifications which will occur during the 
course of these remarks, I admit the truth of both these observa- 
tions. That England is the wealthiest nation on the globe, is indis- 
putable. But it is to be remarked, that this wealth is in the hands 
of a small portion of her inhabitants ; and we can form some idea 
of . its amount from the fact, that we read of private individuals, 
whose annual income is not less than half a million of pounds ster- 
ling. That must, indeed, be a wealthy country , in which the income 
of a private gentleman, for a period of twelve months, would be suf- 
ficient to pay the salary of our President for nearly a hundred years ! 
But perhaps no stronger instance could be adduced, to show how 
unequally the wealth of England is distributed among its inhabi- 
tants, than such a case as this, contrasted with the hundreds of thou- 
sands and millions of the people, who are sunk and sinking under 
the combined evils of moral and physical destitution. Taking the 
population of the three kingdoms together, as constituting one 
political family, it will be found that there is no nation of the world, 
and above all no Christian nation, in which there is such an 
amount of poverty and wretchedness as in England. 

She has, indeed, fought the great battle for wealth with other 
countries, and has, by universal consent, gained the victory. But 
how comes it that, while a few of her sons are rioting in the spoils 
of the vanquished, the cries of the wounded and dying of her own 
battalions, are heard on every side ? How comes it that, in Ire- 
land, out of a population of between eight and nine millions, there 
are over two millions absolutely dependent on the charity of oth- 
ers, scarcely a degree above their own condition ? How comes 
it that, in Scotland, misery and destitution are hardly less gen- 
eral, and, from other causes, perhaps even more excruciating still ? 
How comes it that, in England itself, distress among the labor- 
ing classes presses, at intervals, to such an extreme point, as to 
threaten, from time to time, insurrection and revolution ? How 
comes it, in fine, to happen that, while the dogs of landlords and 



8 

capitalists are well fed and well housed — while their horses are 
daintily provided for, the sons and daughters of Britons around 
them go forth with gaunt looks and sunken features, through want 
of food ? These are results which puzzle political economists, but 
which never could have happened, if Political Economy had not 
been transferred from the Christian basis on which it was origin- 
ally reared in that country, to the inadequate foundations of mere 
individual interest. I am willing, then, to ascribe to the Protest- 
ant religion, the credit of England's wealth ; but her poverty, and 
the destitution of her millions, must, I insist upon it, be charged 
to the same account. This, however, only in so far as these re- 
sults have been brought about by the Political Economy of that 
country. Other causes may have contributed to both — such as 
the system of colonization and military conquest, in which Eng- 
land has been no less distinguished. Neither would I have it to 
be understood, that I regard the nationaTcharacter of the people 
of that country as differing essentially from that of other nations. 
If it be true, as some say it is, that, as a nation or as individuals, 
they are proverbially selfish, I do not ascribe it so much to any 
inherent deficiency of moral excellence or feeling, as I do to their 
system of Public Economy, which has so long prevailed, that it 
has gradually become, as it were, ingrained into the habits, prin- 
ciples, sentiments and associations of the people. Unfortunately, 
the same feelings, with the prevalence of the same system, are 
extending to other nations ; and if they should continue, as ap- 
pears quite likely, it may be difficult, at no distant day, to deter- 
mine which will be entitled to preeminence on this score. There 
is, it is but just to add, perhaps no other nation in which there is 
a greater readiness to come to the relief of public distress, when 
it can be remedied, than in England. But the root of the disease 
is deep in the social condition of the country ; and the highest ef- 
fort of modern statesmen, political economists, and philanthropists, 
is to apply palliatives to the evils which it must produce, without 
daring to eradicate or disturb the principle from which they flow. 
Let us, then, go back to the origin of this system, and trace its 
workings in connection with Political Economy, and we shall, per- 
haps, be able to discover the sources from which both the wealth 
and the poverty of England have been derived. At the begin- 
ning of the sixteenth century, England, as a manufacturing coun- 
try, had no preeminence, and was scarcely equal to France, Italy, 
Spain and the Netherlands. Up till that period, the profession of 



the same religion nad established, throughout all these nations, a 
certain type of uniformity, in reference to moral as well as reli- 
gious questions, constituting a standard common to them all. This, 
however, did not interfere with the peculiar genius and national 
characteristics of each people. But, in reference more especially 
to certain social questions, such as the exercise of charity, making 
provision for the poor, seasons of religious observances, days of 
rest, and the like, the usages of the different nations approached 
sufficiently near to uniformity. England, as is known, broke 
away from this religious connection. The Christianity which she 
embraced in its stead was based upon an entirely different prin- 
ciple, as regards the social relations. The merit of good works 
was rejected, as an erroneous doctrine, and it was ascertained 
that salvation is by faith alone. This is not the time nor the place 
to inquire which of tnese two systems is true, in a theological point 
of view. But they are mentioned in contrast, as having been cal- 
culated to affect most seriously the social relations, especially in 
reference to the condition of the poor. Up to that period, the in- 
fluence of the Christian religion on the hearts of the people was 
sufficient t* provide, by voluntary contribution, for the necessities 
of the destitute ; and it was a great safeguard for that unfortunate 
class, that the wealthy were under the conviction, right or wrong, 
of the importance and advantage to themselves, of doing good to 
their neighbor. When the universal belief was, that even " a cup 
of cold water given in the name of a disciple, should not be with- 
out its reward," the efforts and sacrifices made spontaneously, to 
remedy or provide against distress, could not have been regarded 
either as vain or unproductive expenditure of capital. 

But another and more obvious result of the change was, in the 
increased production which England was enabled to bring forth, 
in consequence of having abolished the religious holidays of the 
ancient church. These, at that time, were little short in number 
of one day in each week. The original motive for their institu- 
tion was not exclusively religious. Those days furnished seasons 
of rest for the serfs or slaves of the middle ages ; and thus, by 
diminishing the profits of their lords, and furnishing themselves 
with such opportunities of education and moral elevation as the 
times afforded, prepared them gradually for the free condition. 
By abolishing them, England was enabled to present a production 
of nearly two months' labor, in each year, more than the other 
States, that still adhered to the ancient system. The consequence 



10 

of this was, that, by increasing the amount, she diminished the 
value, of her productions. Through this diminution in their 
value, she was enabled to undersell her rivals, first in all neutral 
foreign markets ; and then, following up, with energy and perse- 
verance, the advantages thus gained, she was enabled to under- 
sell them in their own countries, and take possession of their own 
markets. Thus she began to drain other countries of their circu- 
lating medium, which became again a new instrument in devel- 
oping still further the advantages of her position. 

At first sight, it may appear to some that a circumstance, ap- 
parently so inadequate, is insufficient to have brought about such 
results. But we may illustrate its operation by an analogous 
case, on a small scale. All over this country there is a class of 
mechanics occupied in the manufacture of shoes. But there is 
in particular one village or town, in New England, that is cele- 
brated for the number of its inhabitants, and the amount of capital, 
engaged in that branch of industry. Now, let us suppose that 
the people of that town find it consistent with their religious sense 
of duty, to add the labor of Sunday to that of the other days in 
each week. What will be the consequence, in regard to the other 
shoemakers throughout the country, who will still feel the obliga- 
tion of sanctifying the Sabbath day ? The consequence will be, 
that Lynn will be able to furnish shoes cheaper than they, and 
yet receive an equal amount of wages, though for a larger amount 
of labor. Her mechanics, therefore, can undersell their rivals 
elsewhere, on the principle well understood in political economy, 
that the increase of production is the cheapening of the value of 
labor. Suppose that each workman can produce a pair of shoes 
per day, the shoemaker of Lynn can sell seven pairs for the price 
of his week's toil, while those of his business, in other places, can 
sell but six for the same money ; and as the buyer has in this, his 
advantage, he will purchase from the Lynn manufacturer rather 
than from the manufacturer of his own town. The money, con- 
sequently, expended for this article, will find its way to Lynn, 
and in a little time, together with the increased labor, will enable 
the manufacturers of that place to break down their rivals 
throughout the country. With this increase of capital the manu- 
facturers of Lynn may, for a time, in order to supply the in- 
creasing demand for their article, afford to pay higher wages to 
their workmen ; but the consequence will be, that, for sake of 
this wages, the number of workmen will be increased, and the 



11 

policy, when the supply shall have equalled the demand, will 
begin to react upon the workmen themselves, and lead to a re- 
duction of their wages. In its course, however, that policy will 
have paralyzed or destroyed this branch of industry, wherever 
those who are engaged in it refuse to work on Sunday.* 

Thus, precisely, has it happened in the history of manufactures 
in England, as compared with the other nations of Europe. The 
results of the entire national industry, during some forty or forty- 
five days in each year, gave her the first advantage over her rivals. 
This brought her capital, and drained from them their resources. 
It made her strong, and left them weak and exhausted. By 
means of capital she was enabled not only to increase the quan- 
tity, but also to improve the quality, of her productions, to a de» 
gree which they could not rival ; and if, at different subsequent 
periods, they attempted to revive their manufactures, even by 
artificial means, British skill and British capital were prompt, 
even at a little sacrifice, if necessary, to effect their extinguish- 
ment. Thus, England became a monopolist in the market of na- 
tions — thus, their wealth flowed to her workshops — -thus, compe- 
tition was destroyed abroad ; and the foundation laid at home for 
that superabundance of riches, by which she has been enabled 
to borrow from her own subjects almost the whole of her national 
r- ;bt, amounting to some eight hundred millions of pounds ster- 
I; ig. It is not pretended that this is the only cause of the great 
; ggregate wealth of England ; but so far as it comes under the 
nead of Political Economy, it was one great cause, of which the 
comparative poverty of other European nations is as manifestly 
another consequence. Here, then, we see the principle of interest 
operating in its national form ; and, thus concentrated, powerful 
enough to sustain England, in competition, against the world. 
But having been successful in putting down all foreign competi- 
tion, how did this principle operate on the condition of its own 



* It was the discovery of this advantage which prompted the propagators of the revo. 
lutionary doctrines in France to declaim, with such vehemence, against the religious 
festivals of that country. And, in the wildness of infidelity and materialism which 
characterized the Revolution itself, it was decreed that there should be one day of rest 
only after nine, instead of six days of labor. In like manner, now, at least, one of the 
results of the policy of England has been the abolition, in great part, of the ancient 
religious holidays, even in Catholic countries. And in France itself, it is a lamentable 
fact, that even the Lord's day is no longer kept holy, except by the truly religious por- 
tion of the country ; but, as regards manufacturing industry, the works are continued 
without distinction of days. 



12 

inhabitants ? The contest now is among those three classes, into 
which Political Economy is pleased to distribute her people. The 
interest of the manufacturer, as a capitalist, is in the profits of his 
production. When the markets are brisk and the demand great, 
he will make large returns by his investments. But still, if he 
can cheapen the cost of production, lie will be increasing his 
profits on both sides. Hence the laborer must maintain his inte- 
rest, against that of the capitalist. Both are free ; and labor is a 
commodity liable to rise and fall, like every other thing, with the 
fluctuations of trade. But the position of the laborer is unfortu- 
nate, inasmuch as the interests of the capitalist must be provided 
for, before his can be reached. He may, indeed, refuse to work 
for less than fair wages ; but no matter how just his pretensions, 
on that .score, the hunger that stands at the portals of his dwelling, 
threatening both himself and his, family, if he do not work, ren- 
ders him perfectly unequal to the contest. He must give in ; for 
the same policy which annihilated competition in other nations, 
employs that same competition at home, for the increase of profits 
by the reduction of wages, or even the occasional suspension of 
labor altogether. Add to this the introduction of machiii aty, 
within the last fifty years. It is estimated that the machinery of 
England, in the various departments of industrial production, is 
equal to the labor of a hundred millions of workmen. Besides 
at the present time, almost every nation has, at length, be; n 
aroused to the subject of manufactures, and has come to the ex- 
clusion that it is wiser to encourage and employ its own laborers, 
than to spend the amount of money which such employment may 
cost in the purchase of British goods. If, then, we take the actual 
condition of the poorer classes of Great Britain, depending in a 
great measure on this kind of employment for the means of life, 
in connection with the rising manufactures of other States, and 
take in the future which statesmen ought to anticipate, it will ap- 
pear doubtful whether, even in an economical point of view, 
the policy of England has not been a . hort-sighted policy after all. 
Let us now turn to the condition oi die agricultural laborers of 
Great Britain. One would suppose that their condition should be 
improved by the transition of so many, from their ranks, to those 
of manufacturing industry. But this is not the case ; for, as a 
class, they are not so well off as they were several centuries ago. 
They cannot, at present, obtain for a day's wages more than one- 
fourth of the amount of food, which could be purchased for a 



is 

day's labor, up to the reign of Henry the Eighth. In an act, or 
rather, the preamble of an act passed in his reign, 1533, " beef, 
pork, mutton and veal" are mentioned as the ordinary "food of 
the poorer sort ;" so that the agricultural laborers of the present 
day require to have three hundred per cent, added to their actual 
wages, in order to live as well as their predecessors did, three 
centuries ago ! Here is an awful deterioration in their condition. 
A precarious, and, at best, a scanty supply of the cheapest, and 
consequently, poorest kind of food, is all they can now obtain in 
exchange or recompense for their incessant toil. And hence they 
are described and represented, in public and official documents, 
as on the verge of absolute pauperism. Why and how has all 
this come to happen ? The question is the more startling, because, 
during this period, the aggregate wealth of the nation has in- 
creased many hundred fold. To my mind, however, the answer 
is simple. It has happened, because, during this period, the 
whole practical economy of the country has been transferred from 
the ancient basis, and left to be regulated on the exclusive prin- 
ciple of universal, material self-interest. It is all very fine, to 
talk, as we Americans do, of the " immense wealth of England ;" 
and, as the English themselves do, of the " sturdy self-reliance 
and manly bearing of a British operative" — as contrasted with 
the humble deportment of corresponding classes in other European 
States. But Political Economy has not seen, or, seeing, has not 
dared to denounce the social blunder— the mockery of freedom— 
which are presented in the spectacle of the starving laborer main- 
taming a contest of competition with the bloated capitalist. 
Each, in that contest, is referred back to his own interest ; and 
while the interest of the one is to increase, or at least not dimin- 
ish, his capital : the interest of the other is simply to escape a 
death of starvation which is pressing on him. 

If these remarks be deemed sufficient to explain why the con* 
dition of the laboring classes is so much deteriorated from former 
times, we may now proceed to explain how the thing has been 
brought about. 

In order to do this, it will be necessary to recur briefly to the 
social condition of England antecedent to the change of religion 
in that country. Nothing is more true, than that a large portion 
of the wealth and of the real estate of the country, were in the 
hands of the clergy. The origin of their title was as just and as 
authentic as that of any other property in Europe. The wealth 

2* 



14 

which they possessed was the growth of time — the result of their 
own industry, economy, and the gradual increase in the value of 
their estates. The church, and its principles — or rather, the 
principle of Christianity, working out through the living agencies 
of the church — had become interwoven, to a certain extent, with 
all the relations of social life. It operated as an invisible bond, 
binding together the various ranks, classes, and conditions of the 
whole people ; and correcting or reconciling the antagonism of 
mere material interests, by the influence of other interests relating 
to another world. It was as the cement in the social edifice. After 
the serfs of the middle ages had passed into the condition of ten- 
ants and free laborers, those who occupied or cultivated the lands 
of the monasteries and of the church, had kind and indulgent 
landlords to deal with. In fact, all this property, as to its advan- 
tages, belonged rather to the poor at large, than to those who were 
its nominal proprietors. The law of the church regulated its uses. 
Its revenues, by this law, were divided into three portions. The 
first was sacred to the maintenance of the poor ; the second was 
appropriated to the repairs of the churches, and the improvement 
of ecclesiastical property. Out of the third, the clergy were en- 
titled to their support ; and if still there remained a surplus, this 
also was a charge on their conscience, as belonging to the poor. 
It is not pretended in these remarks, that this law was, in all 
cases, strictly observed. But yet, the absence of all destitution 
and suffering among the poor, except in seasons of famine, is a 
sufficient proof that it was substantially attended to ; since we 
find that there was no other poor law needed in the country, ex- 
cept that of Him who said, " The poor you have always with 
you, and when you ivill, you can do good unto them." 

When the change of religion took place in England, the posses- 
sion of those ecclesiastical estates, and this wealth, constituted 
perhaps the greatest error of the church. They excited the cu- 
pidity of the monarch and his parasites. And if monasteries 
were denounced as citadels of luxury, indolence, and crime — if 
celibacy was held up, as a variation from the law of God, and 
an injury to the welfare of the State, the, motives of the declaim- 
ers against both are fairly liable to suspicion, when it is remem- 
bered, that the wealth of the assailed was to become the prey and 
patrimony of the assailant. The secular clergy were, with few 
exceptions, brought into the measures of the monarch. The in- 
mates of the cloisters, male and female, were turned adrift on 



the world, and added to the ranks of the destitute, whom they 
had hitherto been accustomed to relieve. The estates of the 
church were seized by the ancestors of many of the landlords 
and noble families, of the present day. The fathers and mothers 
of the poor in the religious communities of both sexes, that were 
scattered from point to point over the surface of England, were 
driven from their peaceful abodes, and their estates seized in the 
private right of private individuals. The consequence of all this 
was, that in less than half a century, there was not concern 
enough for the poor left remaining in the hearts of the people, to 
provide for their support, without the aid, or rather the coercion 
of an act of Parliament. This is the first instance in the annals 
of christian nations, in which the principles of religion were found 
insufficient to furnish a spontaneous provision for the destitute. 
The burthens of their support necessarily fell upon the occupants 
and cultivators of the soil. The lands of the church were rented 
out: on the principle of the proprietors' interest, modified only *b}r 
two considerations — one was the extent of competition among the 
applicants ; and the other was, the amount of rent which might 
be exacted without depriving the tenants and their families of 
the means, at least necessary, for subsistence. Hence, weighty 
rents ; and as the landlords were for the most part, the law ma* 
kers also : hence too, in process of time, those statutes in favor 
of landlord, interests, which in our days are familiarly known un- 
der the designation of corn law T s. Does not every one see that 
all such legislation, whatever may be its other effects, must tend 
to diminish the wages of all the productive and laboring classes, 
by either diminishing the quantity, or raising the price, of bread ? 
So that if you look to the relations thus created between the la- 
borers of England and the other two classes into which political 
economists have divided the population, namely landlords and 
capitalists, it would seem as if the whole practical purpose of 
public economy has been to reduce the working people down to 
that condition in which Malthurs has discovered what he calls the 
" natural standard of wages" — which means, perhaps, a little 
more than is barely sufficient to keep the workmans' soul and 
body together. 

It is impossible not to perceive, in all this, the injurious effect 
of the principle to which we have already, more thaa once, al- 
luded, as the actual regulator of Political Economy in Great 
Britain, namely, self-interest. Viewed according to the light of 



16 

t this principle, it was perfectly natural for those who were at once 
landlords and law-makers, to secure to themselves the largest 
amount of rents ; and to throw off, on others, the weight of every 
public burthen. In former times, the system presented the re- 
sources of the poor, from the very land which produced the 
crop. But now, the whole crop is claimed for the benefit of the 
landlord ; and the tax, for the support of the poor, is to be gath- 
ered, not from those who grow the wheat, but from those who 
eat the bread; — that is to *say, in every nine cases oat often, 
from the laboring classes themselves. Thus the laboring classes 
of England are placed as in a cleft stick, between capitalists and 
landlords, and feel the effects of pressure from both sides ; — from 
the one side, in the reduction of wages ; and from the other, in the 
increased prices of food. 

The consequence now is, that in that country, including the 
three kingdoms, there is poverty and distress, such as cannot 
be found in the civilized world besides. In other countries there 
is less of aggregate wealth ; but in no nation is there to be found 
so much, or such intense, misery, as among the poor of England. 
Nothing can show this more fully than the official reports made, 
from time to time, by order of Parliament, on their condition. 
Leaving the condition of the agricultural laborers aside, the re- 
ports on the condition of laborers in mines and manufactories, 
present a picture of physical and moral destitution, such as it is 
appalling to contemplate. We read, for instance, of children's 
being employed from the age of seven years and upward. And 
why is this ? Because a child is as good as an adult person in 
waiting on the evolutions of machinery. Now the wages of a 
child is less than that of a man, and interest whispers to the 
employer, to give the child the preference. It matters not, 
that the delicate limbs of such beings are unable to support 
their bodies during the long hours of labor. It matters'not that 
they become deformed, and contract physical maladies, which 
will accompany them through the remainder of their wretched 
lives. These things go on — for interest so determines it — until 
Parliament is at length obliged to pass enactments to interdict 
such, outrages on the rights of childhood. 

It is quite honorable to the feelings of the English people that 
they should sympathize in the sufferings of those who are in the 
condition of slaves throughout the world. But while her gaze 
•an extend across the Atlantic ; and while her honest and genu- 



17 

ine sympathy is often disgraced by the cant and fanaticism of those 
who would be its organs, surely it cannot be wrong for us to 
sympathize with those of her own population, whom avarice, or the 
interests of capital have buried in the bowels of the earth in her 
mining districts. Delicate women and tender children, as reported 
to Parliament, were found in the mines, with harness fitted to them, 
and obliged to drag loads on their hands and knees, after the man- 
ner of beasts. Passing from these again, to the pauper class, we 
see that the Public Economy directs their classification in a man- 
ner, such as, in some countries, would be regarded as a violation 
of the rights of human nature. The dearest ties — even those 
which constitute the last sweet drop, in the cup of poverty, are 
rudely disregarded and ruptured. Husbands and wives, parents 
and children, brothers and sisters, are separated from each other, 
and distributed in the establishments of public relief, as if they 
were malefactors, guilty of some social crime. Now, the worst 
feature in this system of Political Economy is, not precisely that 
the facts are so ; but that the prejudices of the nation, like the 
principles of the science itself, as looking to individual interest 
as the life-spring of Society /do notjallow them even to conceive, 
that things ought to be otherwise. And so true is this, that ac- 
cording to the recognized principle, you may pass. all the various 
members of society in review, and you will be unable to discover 
to whom the fault belongs ; and in fact, according to the prin- 
ciple of self-interest, the fault belongs nowhere ! Every man 
for himself. 

It is the contemplation of all this, that has impelled many be- 
nevolent, but, as I conceive, mistaken persons, to conclude, that 
society in general is organized on a vicious principle. Individuals 
of this description have stood forth, in France, England, and this 
country also, flattering themselves with the hope of being able to 
withdraw some portion of their fellow beings from the miseries 
which they regard as essentially connected with the actual state 
of things. For this purpose, various schemes and schools of Po- 
litical Economy have made their appearance, "encouraging separate 
systems of private socialism, founded each on some favorite the- 
ory. These°either have failed, or will fail ; and principally for 
the reason that, while they have discovered the self-interest which 
operates so injuriously in the present systems, they have not dis- 
covered in those which they would substitute, any other principle 
©f sufficient power to correct it. This can be done only through 



18 

a renovated faith, and a practical exercise of the virtues prescribed 
by religion. The tendency of society in general, at least in all 
that appertains to Political Economy, is in the opposite direction ; 
and there is but little hope that its course will be arrested until 
nations, as well as individuals, shall have been punished for their 
great social error. 

How much ink has been shed in describing the evils which now 
press on the people, at least the laboring classes, of Great Britain ! 
How much of profound meditation has been employed, in vain ef- 
forts to find a solution for the social problem of that country ! And 
though many of her statesmen have begun to trace these evils 
back to their true cause, yet few have proclaimed the discovery, and 
fewer still have ventured to suggest the true remedy. Sometimes 
the evils are charged to one cause, sometimes to another. Now, 
it is the " restrictions on commerce ;" and now, it is an " excess 
of population over and above the wants of consumption." But 
no one has, as yet, contended for the true cause ; that is, the ab- 
sence of a religious power which should be able to extend the ob- 
ligation of duties, in exact proportion with the extension of rights. 
The social machine, in its relations to Political Economy, has 
been left to regulate itself, by the spring of mere individual inte- 
rest ; and it is manifest that the weights and balances necessary to 
restore its equilibrium and to regulate its motion, cannot be ad- 
justed except by the invocation of some extrinsic power, such as 
can be found in practical Christianity alone. The earth is not 
expected J:o furnish itself with light and heat : these come from 
the sun. So also, with regard to the practical Political Economy 
of modern nations — unless its lips be touched and purified with 
living coals from the altars of Divine Religion, it can never ac- 
complish the entire purpose, according to which society is an in- 
stitution of God. Any religion which can accomplish this — what- 
ever may be the truth or the error of its other dogmas, will have 
rendered essential service to humanity. It is on this account that 
Political Economy, as a science, appears to me inadequate and 
defective. It would be more complete, and certainly more ex- 
alted, if, instead of regarding man as the mere "producer" and 
" consumer" of material wealth, it took cognizance of his intel- 
lectual, moral, and religious nature. It may, however, be ob- 
jected, that these faculties, being spiritual and not material, have 
nothing to do with the subject. This seems to me an unfounded 
conclusion. The ancient Persians, for instance, held, as a reli- 



19 

gious opinion, that anything which could defile the waters of the 
ocean was sinful. Here, then, is an important branch of Politi- 
cal Economy — maritime commerce — affected by a religious con- 
viction ! After the expulsion of the missionaries from Japan, the 
Government of that country required that the merchants of Eu- 
rope who wished to trade with its own, should, as a condition, sine 
qua no?i, trample on the emblem of Christianity, the cross. Hol- 
land, alone, agreed to the terms. Here, then, the absence of a 
religious conviction on the mind of one nation of Europe, affected 
the entire trade of Christendom with Japan! The calculations of 
revenue formed by Sir Robert Peel are founded on the most positive 
data of Political Economy ; and yet, an idea — a moral idea — 
springing into the mind of a humble but excellent priest in Cork,* 
distubs the Minister's conclusions, to the amount of between two 
and three millions of our currency, in the annual excise duties on 
one single article ! Time does not permit me to enlarge on the 
proofs, or facts, going to show [that not only intellect and moral 
sentiment, but also the affections and virtues of the heart, have all 
of them an essential bearing on the subject. 

In assuming the " importance of a Christian basis" for Po- 
litical Economy, I did not indeed imagine, as 3^011 may eas- 
ily conceive, that the system now so deeply and almost univer- 
sally established, could be transferred to any other foundation 
than that on which it rests. But when I consider the nature of 
the evils which press upon so large a portion of modern society, 
it seems to me, that a preventive, if not a remedy, is discovera- 
ble in the Political Economy, (so to call it,) of the old Catholic 
Church. She had, preeminently, the faculty of guiding the af- 
fections and energies of mankind, in the direction most required 
by the actual wants of society in given times and circumstances. 
She differed from the modern religions, essentially on one great 
point ; namely, that, while they teach that salvation is "by faith 
alone," and that good works have no merit, though they are pro- 
vided for, as consequences of faith ; she taught that they are to be 
concomitants of belief; that faith without works, is dead in itself; 
and that whatever good we do to one of the least of Christ's dis- 
ciples, He will reward as if done to himself. This is the turning 
point of difference between the Political Economy of the Catholic 
Church, and that of the religions which have been substituted in 



* Father Matthew. 



20 

its stead. Thus, she created an interest not to be estimated by 
the acquisition or exchange of material wealth, but by the consid- 
eration of advantages in the spiritual order and in the life to come. 
This doctrine, like the principle of life in the human body, vivified 
the spirit, and influenced the actions of all her members. Be- 
sides, she conceived human nature as having been exalted an^ en- 
nobled through the Incarnation and Redemption, by the Son of 
God. Hence she valued human beings according to the high 
dignity of their ransom, irrespective of wealth or poverty ? She 
has, indeed, been reproached with the tendency to abridge the 
rights of men. But the explanation of this is to be found, 
in the fact, that the inherent selfishness of fallen humanity, 
prompts them to claim injurious immunities ; while, as she con- 
ceived, her office was to apportion duties according to the means 
which Providence furnished for the discharge of them. Men are 
prompt to assert their rights ; but prone to forget that every right 
is accompanied with a corresponding duty. To every class and 
condition she assigned its own peculiar range of Christian obliga- 
tion. To Sovereigns and Legislators, those of justice and mercy 
in the enactment and execution of laws. To the rich, moderation 
in enjoyment, and liberality toward the poor. To the poor, pa- 
tience under their trials, and affection toward their wealthier 
brethren. Toward all, the common obligation of loving one an- 
other, not in word, but in deed. Neither was this by a uniform 
development of the principles of the Christian doctrine from the 
pulpit alone, but by a rigid process of self-examination and self- 
accusation, which was incumbent on every individual, when pre- 
paring for the Sacraments of Penance and of the Holy Eucharist. 
Here, the lawgiver, the landlord, the capitalist, and the laborer — 
all men of all classes — were required to stand at least once a year 

judgment upon themselves, in the presence of God and of hi* 
minister. 

Far be it from me to insinuate or assert, that these great lead- 
ing duties are not set forth to the people by the religions which 
have taken the place of the Catholic faith in Great Britain. But 
I think it will be evident that, in them all, there are wanting the 
means for their practical inculcation. First, because the para- 
mount motive has been utterly destroyed by rejecting the "merit 
of good works," and proclaiming " salvation by faith alone." It 
is, indeed, alleged that, by a higher motive still, works, as 
the consequence, or fruits, or evidence, of faith, are provided 



21 

for. But still, those who enjoin works of this kind, since they de- 
clare them to be of " no merit" in the sight of God, seem to pull 
down with one hand what they have built up with the other. Be- 
sides this, in the new system of religion, every man claims to be 
the judge of his moral duties, as well as of his religious faith. 
Thus you perceive that the only motives left, as inducements for 
the performance of good works, in this system, are essentially of 
the human and temporal order. Now the manifestations of these 
fundamental principles are obvious, in the social developments 
under the influence of the two religions. Of its consequences, in 
the one case, the preceding remarks of this lecture are a sufficient 
exhibition. Rights are claimed — interests are prosecuted — every 
one that can, throws the burthen from himself. Each is the judge 
of his own moral "and social duties — and self-love blinds him 
againat what would require the sacrifice of his material interests, 
even if religion presented any adequate motive for making that 
sacrifice. Wealth is accumulating enormously on one side — pov- 
erty, deep and distressing, spreads on the other ; — -England is the 
richest, and the poorest country on the globe ; and where, or to 
whom, belongs the guilt of this social anomaly, no man can deter- 
mine ! 

The type of the other doctrine has developed itself in those prin- 
ciples and institutions which incur the censure, and sometimes 
the hatred, even of those who are the victims of their overthrow. 
If they were errors in religion, it is the more to be regretted, as 
they would have been blessings in Social, if not in Political Econ- 
omy. They would have been, first of all, a merciful resource for 
the condition of the poor, which now constitutes the great puzzle 
of Political Economists, throughout the three kingdoms. The in- 
terests of man — taking in his spiritual nature and his eternal des- 
tiny — would be surveyed from a high and holy eminence. And 
when the rich man gave, of his abundance, to the needy, he would 
be acting, not against, but according to this principle of Christian 
interest. When the prince or the noble, moved by the " Amor 
Jem nobilis" descended from his elevated position, to put on the 
sandals, the garment, and the girdle of religious poverty, in some 
monastic order, he understood, perfectly well, what he was about 
■ — comprehended the advantage of the step ; and, whether he was 
mistaken or not, his determination was of infinite importance to 
the condition of the destitute. He became poor from a religious 
motive, having first, perhaps, given his property to the relief of 



22 

the class to whose condition he attached himself. He became 
their mediator with the rich — his own example had a powerful 
influence on them — he represented the necessity of alms-deeds — 
he spoke of their common Saviour, as having, in his own person, 
selected the condition of poverty ; and reminded them that what- 
ever they did for their suffering brethren, was done for Christ. 

It was by the spirit of this doctrine of good works, that hospit- 
als and asylums foi the afflicted, sprang, as if spontaneously, into 
existence, in all parts of Great Britain, as well as of other Euro- 
pean countries. It was by this that every kind of social evil, 
whether in physical suffering or in moral destitution, found 
whole armies of volunteers, ready to go in the face of pestilence and 
death, and this without human recompense, to counteract its rav- 
rges. It was by this, that individuals were constantly found ready 
to devote themselves to every species of good works. 

The question in connection with this subject, is not whether 
these individuals were acting under a genuine principle of Chris- 
tianity or not — but it is, whether their devotion had any bearing 
upon the Political Economy of the country. That it had, is in 
my mind, beyond dispute. Firstly: In such a state of things, no 
poor law would be necessary. Secondly : The burthen of their 
support would not be regarded as a burthen, but as a privilege, 
and would fall on individuals in the rank of landlords and capital- 
ists, instead of laborers as at present. Thirdly : The expense of 
supporting the poor would not be increased by the enormous 
sums which are paid to state officers, in that department. Fourthfy : 
The ecclesiastical revenues, which have now quite a different di- 
rection, would be applied to that purpose. Fifthly : But besides 
all this, the iufluence of the doctrine I have alluded to, would 
infuse a spirit of gentle kindness into the treatment of the poor, 
which would leave no room for those dark and bitter passions 
against society, with which their breasts are now, too often, agi- 
tated; for it is a shocking feature of our times, that distinguished 
writers on Political Economy, have gone so far, as to maintain 
that poverty when it reaches the point of destitution ought to be 
treated as "infamy," in order to make the strugle for self sup- 
port of the sinking laborer " honorable." 

If this reasoning, and these reflections be correct we see what 
has been the cause of the prevailing distress ; and what would 
have been the preventive or the remedy. And in either case, the 
great social calamity which is every day becoming more and more 



23 

formidable, in the estimation of British statesmen and political 
economists, instead of being, as it now is, apparently irremedia- 
ble, would never have existed at all. 

Some may imagine that in following out this subject, my judg- 
ment has been warped by a natural partiality for the religion to 
which I belong. This is, indeed, possible ; but I can only say, 
that if it be true, I am entirely unconscious of it. Neither, at 
the present day, are these views peculiar to Catholics ; a decla- 
ration briefly uttered,among others, by a distinguished Protestant 
statesman, Lord John Manners, expresses a similar conclusion, 
when he says, "that the re-establishment of the monasteries 
which have been destroyed, can alone provide a suitable remedy 
for the condition of the poor." 

What, we may no,.' ask, would be the influence of the Political Econ- 
omy of the ancient Church, on the class of society immediately next above 
pauperism ? Of this, we may judge by the fact already noticed, that 
during its prevalence, the English laborer could exchange a day's work 
for four or five times the quantity of food, which a day's labor will now 
bring. But what, it may be asked, had the doctrines of the Church to 
do with a result like this ? They had simply this : that from principles 
already referred to, her policy, if I can use the expression, was directed 
to, or at least, resulted in, two consequences ; — one was, to keep up the 
value of labor ; the other, to keep down the price of bread. Both of 
these objects were included in the economy of religious festivals, which 
gave increased value to labor, by diminishing the amount of production. 
Rich and poor, assembled on an equality around the altars. Those days 
furnished leisure for the poor to be instructed, at least, in their Christian 
hopes and duties; as well as to repose from toil. The ceremonies of the 
Church — the grandeur and beauty of its architecture — the works of 
painting, and art, and music, which could be enjoyed within its walls — 
exercised a refining influence on their feelings and manners, in the 
absence of that popular education which the multiplication of books and 
the improvements in knowledge have since so much facilitated. It is to 
be observed, however, to those who understand no more of the subject, 
than the silly charge that, " the Church in all this encouraged idleness," 
a more unfounded imputation could scarcely be conceived. The prin- 
ciple of the Church, on that subject, may be seen in the rules of her 
religious orders. In these, you will find time so distributed, as to allow 
periods for labor — for reading— prayer — repose — but 'not one moment 
for idleness. It is to be remembered, also, that these holidays, in no way, 
interfered with the crops- or productions of the earth. For, not only was 
labor allowed, but in many cases, absolutely enjoined, even on Sundays, 
when the inclemencies of the season endangered the productions of the 
earth. 



24 

What then was the result in the light o? Political Economy ? Simply 
that which was most important for the consideration of the laboring 
classes. The evils of over-production were provided against ; and thus, 
the value and adequate price of labor, were maintained. Had this sys- 
tem been continued, seasons of rest would have been provided for, and 
regularly distributed, at intervals, throughout the year. But these days 
were abolished : and after capitalists had realized the advantages of the 
change, its rebound fell, with terrible effect, upon the laborers. Even 
at reduced wages, they have to encounter seasons when employment is 
denied for weeks and months. And why is this ? It is from over-produc- 
tion j — the very evil which the economy of the Church, in the observance 
of holidays, was calculated to prevent. In the actual condition of the 
laborers, the want of employment is synonymous with the want of food ; 
and when the cry of distress rings in the ears of their rulers, it is too 
often ascribed to other, than the real causes. The author of the " Essay 
on Population," Malthus, startled Europe with the theory, that man- 
kind increases in a ratio disproportioned to the means of their support. 
He maintained that, inasmuch as population increases in a geometrical 
ratio, and the agricultural productions of the earth, only in an arith- 
metical degree ; therefore, a time must come, when the excess of the 
former, over the amount of the latter, would require that a large portion 
of the human race should perish ! In this, there is some ground to be- 
lieve, that he was misled by confounding the excess of " production" with 
excess of " population." If the island of Great Britain were the only 
agricultural soil on the globe ; then, indeed, with its present population, 
his theory might be correct. But the earth is teeming with fertility, 
which the industry of man has not yet turned to account. If the inter- 
ested policy of England allowed other nations to send their surplus agri- 
cultural produce, in fair exchange, for her industrial fabrics, there would 
be no need for the invention of this theory. It is estimated that the 
valley of the Mississippi, alone, could furnish the staple of life for a 
population of one hundred and twenty-five millions. And yet the genkis 
of Political Economy, in England, was such as to conceal this fact from 
the mind of Malthus. And instead of allowing the bread of that valley 
to reach the hungry operatives of Manchester ; — in other words, instead of 
diminishing the material interests of the British landholder, he allowed 
himself to be thrown on the horrible alternative of recommending, as a 
prospective remedy, that the increase of population should,*as much as 
possible, be prevented by restraints on the marriage of the poor. But 
what is more surprising still, is, that his theory should have been received 
with approbation by distinguished writers on Political Economy. Indeed, 
so far is this true, that the doctrine is now boldly asserted, that in reality 
the pauper has no more right to quarter himself on the public for sup- 
port, than the rich man : — that if he be so supported, it is owing to the 
humanity of the public, but not due, as a right, to his condition. The 



25 

universal doctrine prevalent is, that every man has "a right to do 
what he pleases with his own ;" — consequently, that, unless compelled 
by law, he has a right to refuse relief from his property, and leave 
the sufferer to die ! When Sir Robert Peel, on a late occasion, de- 
clared in Parliament, that property had "duties as well as rights," 
{.he sentiment was reechoed by the press, with one chorus of aston- 
ishment ; as if an axiom of morals, as old as the Christian Religion, 
were a recent discovery made by the minister. 

But, supposing we admit the correctness of the conclusion at which 
Malthus arrived, how awful and retributive is the vindication which it 
furnishes of the social economy of the Church in the sanctioning of volun- 
tary celibacy ! The nation that denounced celibacy when it was a volun- 
tary choice, in the clergy and in the monastic institutions, are reduced to 
the necessity of recommending the enforcement of it by compulsion, in 
regard to the poor. If that institution had continued, how great would 
have been the public economy in the support of the clergy ! One twen- 
tieth part of the revenues of the Church at the present time, would be 
sufficient to support a single, that is, unmarried clergyman, in the propor 
tion of one to every one thousand souls of the population. If it be said, that" 
the ecclesiastical revenues return to the people, through some other chan- 
nel, a better condition would be that nineteen-twentieths of it should not 
have been taken from them at all. But even the economy would not be 
the only advantage. The influence of such a ministry of religion, acting 
in a moral direction, could not but produce the happiest effects, among 
. that portion of mankind who are compelled to toil daily for the means of 
subsistence. Their pleasures would be of a more rational, more elevat- 
ing, and, at the same time, more economical description. Their feelings 
and manners would be softened and improved, by the influence of religion 
and frequent intercourse with its ministers. Their moral faculties would 
be cultivated ; and, if the trials of life bore heavily upon them, religion 
would still be near, to console them with the promised hopes and joys of 
another world. 

As it is, their condition, in all these respects, is exceedingly deplorable. 
We may take a few of the answers given to the commissioners to estab- 
lish this point. The following are given in a late number of the Edin- 
burg Review, as specimens of the "general ignorance" and moral destitu- 
tion : \ 

" Ann Eggtey, aged eighteen. ' I am sure I do n't know how to spell 
my name. I don't know my letters. I went a little to a Sunday-school, 
but soon gave it over. I walk about and get fresh air on Sundays. I 
never go to church or chapel. I never heard of Christ at all ; nobody has 
ever told me about him, nor have my father and mother ever taught me 
to pray. I know no prayer. I never pray. I have been taught nothing 
about such things.' — App. Part 1, p. 252. 

"Eliza Coats, aged eleven. ' I do naught on Sundays. I do n't know 



26 

where I shall go if I am a bad girl. I never heard of Jesus Christ. I 
think God made the world, but I do n't know where God is.' — Ibid. 

" William Cruchilow, aged sixteen. ' I can read the Bible — go to school 
five nights in the week. I don't know anything of Moses. Never heard 
of France. I do n't know what America is. Never heard of Scotland 
nor Ireland. Can't tell how many weeks there are in a year. There 
are twelve pence in a shilling, and twenty shillings in a pound. There 
are eight pints in a gallon of ale.' 

" Edward Whitehead, aged fifteen. ' I go to church three times on 
Sundays. I do not know where Birmingham is, nor where London is. I 
never heard of Ireland ; I have seen Irishmen.' 

" William Butler, aged nineteen. ' I go to church on Sundays. I read 
the Testament, and sometimes in the Bible, but no other book. I can 
say my catechism. We sometimes work a few hours at a time. When 
there is no sale, we get no money, but only ale, when we leave at eleven. 
I generally get drunk on such occasions.' 

" Peter Dale, aged twelve. ' I have been to Sunday-school, and can 
read nicely in a spelling-book (he had been to school about two years.) 
Jesus Christ was God's Son ; he was n't born at all ; he was nailed to a 
cross ; he came to save sinners ; sinners are bad men, that drinked and 
sweared, and lied. I think there are sinners on earth now. If 1 am a 
good boy, and try to please him, 1 shall go to Jesus — if not, I shall go to 
hell. I do n't know what disciples were rulers ; they did nothing wrong ; 
can't tell who the apostles were. Four times five is twenty ; five times 
six is twenty-eight. I never heard what's the biggest town in England. 
Scotland is a town, isn't it, sir? I go to chapel as well as school. 1 
never go larking on Sundays.' — App. Part 1, p. 250." 

That these cannot be considered as isolated cases, of what the review, 
ers call the " general ignorance," may be inferred from another official 
statement: viz., that of 467,894 marriages of all classes, in England and 
Wales, within the last three years ; 303,836 of the persons thus married, 
were unable to write their own names. 

Such are the results of Political Economy, as based on the principle of 
individual material interest. It might possibly suffice, if the means of 
protecting — each his own interest — were equal in the hands of all. But 
what chance have the poor against the rich ? the weak against the strong, 
under such a system? When all the social elements of material industry, 
of consumption, production, capital and labor, wealth of nations in gen- 
eral, all resolve themselves, by common consent and established usage, 
into mere personal selfishness ? Could any other result have been rea- 
sonably expected, by men who understand the feelings and passions of 
poor fallen nature ? And what remedy can be applied now ? Alas ? 
whatever remedy either wisdom or philanthropy might suggest, will come 
too late for many of the victims that are sinking under this state of things. 
And it is feared, even by wise men, that they will lead, at no remote pe- 



27 

riod, if they continue on, to some social catastrophe, such as one shudders 
to think of. Unquestionably, in the system itself, there are elements for 
mitigating these miseries. But the measures for that purpose can only be 
presented in the aggregate of abstract interest, and are still violently oppo- 
sed by the selfishness of coteries, and of individuals who have power to 
resist them. The only way to apply a corrective to the root of the evil, 
would be, not indeed to destroy the principle of interest, but to enlarge it, 
to an extent corresponding with the whole nature and destiny of man, as 
made known through the lessons of our Divine Redeemer. Bring tempo- 
ral interests into harmony with spiritual — infuse some portion of the attri- 
butes of God, justice and mercy, into the minds and hearts of princes, of 
legislators, of nobles, of landlords; yea, if possible, of capitalists and 
money-changers themselves, as the Christian rules, for their thoughts and 
actions toward the weaker classes of their countrymen. Persuade them, 
not only that there is a God in heaven, but also, that He is the common 
Father of all, rich and poor ; that they ought to love each other. Bring 
their hearts nearer to each other — unite and bind them together, not only 
as citizens of the same country, but also as aspirants to the same immortal 
life, and eternal glory. Any effort toward this, will be a step in the great 
cause of society and of human nature. All this the Church would have 
done, without seeming to spend a thought upon it, if you had allowed her 
to continue the peaceful mission with which, her Founder sent her forth to 
the nations of the earth. In times of barbarism she was the means of 
erecting for your forefathers, a noble and majestic social edifice, suffi- 
ciently ample to shield and protect them all. She would have enlarged, 
improved, and adorned it, in proportion to your increasing numbers, and 
the varying wants of your condition. But you overthrew this, and built 
for yourselves an incongruous and misshapen structure. You are 
fain to call it a social edifice ! But no : its true name is a temple of 
interest. Princes, and lords, and capitalists, are indeed well provided 
for, beneath its glittering arches—a few others still, may find protection 
within its vestibule ; but as for you, oh ye millions of the poor and labor- 
ing classes, who are called and compelled to worship at its shrine, ye are 
strewn around its outer porches ; and, instead of its sheltering you from 
the storm, and the rains of adversity, you are even drenched with the wa- 
ters that descend from its roof. Go back among the ruins of former 
things, you may still find and trace out, the deep foundations of the better 
edifice you destroyed. And, if there be no other hope for you, co-operate 
with Divine Religion in rearing up its stately walls, and its capacious 
dome, beneath which, even as regards your temporal condition, you, or at 
least the heirs of your condition, your children, may yet find shelter and 
protection. 



" Music for the People," published by J. Winchester, 30 Ann-street, New- York. 

New and Beautiful Collection of Church Music. 
Copgrigljt of each page Bmxxzb. 

THE 

BEETHOVEN COLLECTION 

OF 

SACRED MUSIC: 

COMPRISING 

Themes now first arranged from the instrumental compositions of beet- 
hoven, haydn. mozart. and other eminent composers ; and 

ORIGINAL TUNES, CHANTS, AND ANTHEMS; 

THE WHOLE HARMONIZED IN FOUR PARTS, WITH AN ACCOMPANIMENT FOR THE ORGAN : 

TO WHICH IS PREFIXED A NEW METHOD OF INSTRUCTION IN THE RUDIMENTS 

OF MUSIC, AND THE ART OF READING WITH INTONATION. 

BY E. IVES, Jr., W. ALPERS, AND HENRY C. TIMM. 

It has long been a source of deep regret, that men of great talent and extensive musical knowledge, in this 
country, should have entirely neglected so important a branch of musical composition as the services of our 
churches involve. While the other branches of music have been steadily progressing, this alone has remained 
stationary. Those deeply interested in the subject of Church Music have constantly expressed dissatisfaction 
arid regret at its low and almost helpless state ; but still no steps were taken to remedy the evil, until the present 
enterprise. 

This book has been prepared by three distinguished and experienced Professors, and differs from the ordinary 
books of church music, in the following particulars: 

1st. The music which it contains is such as can be found in no other book, every page of it being copyrighted. 

2d. It is complete in its arrangement, the voice parts standing in their proper order, with a separate score 
for the organ. 

3d. The words of the entire hymn are printed so as to be easily read with the music. 

4th. It will contain all the metres used in all the churches of different denominations, as well as all the service 
of the Episcopal Churches, including the Festivals. 

5th. It is got up in a far superior style to any book of the kind which has appeared in this country, being printed 
on a large and open page, with entirely new types. 

The collections hitherto published have been inconvenient in form, printed with bad type, absurdly arranged, 
and wholly destitute of an organ accompaniment. They are marked by a worse error even than these, viz. : the 
faulty manner in which the tunes are voiced. Little or no attention is paid to the register of separate voices. 
The harmonies are poor, monotonous, and devoid of movement Such collections, moreover, tend to keep up 
the old, droning style of singing, and retard the progress of good taste. The want of any good book heretofore 
has rendered it necessary for organists and choristers in our large churches to arrange and compose their own 
music. This fact proves how much a work like " The Beethoven Collection" is needed. 

This Collection is not, as its name would seem to imply, made up entirely of selections from the works of Beet- 
hoven, but from those of Mozart, Haydn, Cramer, Pleyei,, Steibelt, Kalliwoda, Carter, Vul- 
pius, Winter, A. Hesse, Herold, Hoffmeister, Ries, Bellini, Vanhall, Hoderman, etc., etc. 
There are many admirable original contributions by the Editors themselves, with many of the 

EXQUISITE OLD GERMAN CHORALS, 
harmonized by that profound musician, Rink. Besides appropriate Psalms and Hymns for every occasion, it 
contains 

THE WHOLE OF THE. CHURCH SERVICE, WITH ANTHEMS, ETC., 

for particular days and seasons of the year. 

The work is admirable in form, and is printed as clearly as the finest copperplate engraving ; the parts are ar- 
ranged in proper order, and the eye is not annoyed by the accumulation of useless figures: for a full organ part 
is affixed to every piece of music through the book. The tunes are well voiced— great attention having been 
given to the melodial succession of each part— thus rendering the most difficult of them comparatively easy of 
execution. Everything is strictly and beautifully harmonized ; rich, without being abstruse— pleasing, without 
being paltry. The words are selected with great care, comprising many of the most beautiful sacred poems in 
our language. There is an instruction-book appended to the work, by Mr. Ives— who has had twenty years' 
experience in teaching— which cannot fail to advance the pupil at a perfect railroad pace. 

Price $1 a copy ; $9 for twelve copies. Choirs supplied on liberal terms. 



" Periodicals- for the People," published by J. Winchester, 30 Ann st., New-York- 

THE NE"w~WORLD. 

A WEEKLY FAMILY JOURNAL OF 

popular CxUratttr*, Stxtntt, 2lrt, an*r Jferoa 

THREE DOLLARS A YEAR, IN ADVANCE. 

PARK BENJAMIN, EDITOR; 

ASSISTED BY 

HENRY C. DEMING AND JAMES MACKAY. 

The proprietors take occasion, on the commencement of a new volume of this favorite weekly newspaper, to 
announce that they have made the most extensive and expensive arrangements to improve and elevate its literary 
character. It will henceforth present the combined attractions of 

A NEWSPAPER, A MAGAZINE, AND A REVIEW. 

It will more closely resemble the London Spectator than any other journal, in its leading characteristics ; and it 
will take that high critical ground, which is now almost unoccupied in our country. It will review, fairly and 
faithfully, all the new books of value issued both from the English and American press, without reference to the 
sources from which they emanate. No puffs of any kind whatsoever will be admitted, without a mark to desig- 
nate them as such ; and no publishers' notices will appear, except they are paid for as advertisements. At the 
same time, every work, however small, however cheap, will be duly noticed according to its desert. It is the 
ambition of the Editors to make a journal, upon which the public can implicitly rely for the truth, fidelity, and 
justice of its opinions. 

Mr. Park Benjamin, by whom the New World was commenced, will continue, as heretofore, its principal 
Editor , and he will be assisted in his labors by two highly-accomplished scholars and men of talent, viz. : Henry 
C. Benin*, Esq., and the Rev. James Mackay. To these gentlemen the department of Reviews will be chiefly 
committed. Mr. Deming is no new acquaintance of on readers ; he is known by many brilliant and eloquent 
articles signed " D," which have attracted general applause, and by his admirable translation of the " Mysteries 
of Paris." Mr. Mackay is an excellent classical scholar, a pure and graceful writer and highly competent as a 
critic. 

Notwithstanding this new effort to make the New World the best critical authority, and to give it a lofty tone, 
it will contain as many 

ROMANTIC ATTRACTIONS 
as heretofore, by presenting numerous tales and poems, and brief articles of interest. Its list of correspondents 
has been greatly enlarged ; and as many 

POPULAR AMERICAN AUTKORS 

will be engaged to contribute to its pages, as are now arrayed (in their lists of contributors chieflyj'in the pictorial 
monthly magazines. 

The New World is now the only publication of its kind in the country ; the only survivor of the class of large 
papers— the Brother Jonathan and the Boston Notion having gone buck to the folio shape, and partaking more 
of the newspaper than the magazine. A careful compend of the Foreign and Domestic News will, however, be 
presented as heretofore ; thus preserving its character as THE BEST FAMILY JOURNAL IN THE UK. ON, 
in all respects complete. 

TERMS.— Three Dollars a year, in advance ; Two eopies for Five Dollars. 

PREMIUM TO SUBSCRIBERS. 

"THE MYSTERIES OF PARIS," translated by H. C. Deming, Esq., and which the Boston Atlas pro- 
nonnces to be "the book of the people," will be given as a premium to every subscriber who will remit $3 for 
tli" New World one year, in advance, free of postage. 

The price of this work alone (350 large octavo pages, the size of the New World,) is $1; and, to show the 
value and interest which this new inducement for increasing our already large subscription list possesses, we add 
the following : 

From the Boston Atlas. 

"The 'Mysteries of Paris' is a picture of human life. The humble may read it, and glean encourage- 
ment from its pages ; the hau&hty may read it, and take warning from its lessons , the good may learn to honor 
goodness, and the wicked may realize the certain, though perhaps tardy consequences of guilt. It is the BOOK 
OF TH R PEOPLE and eloquently pleads the cause of the oppressed and humble classes. 

Address J. WINCHESTER, 30 Ann-street, New- York. 



*' Books for the People" published by J. Winchester, 30 Ann-street, New- York. 

New and Valuable Standard Work. 

MEXICO 

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 

BY BRANTZ MAYER, 

LATE SECRETARY OF LEGATION TO MEXICO 

EMBELLISHED "WITH 

©tu jJjttttirreb an lr St*t£ €itgrax)tng0, 

EXECUTED IN THE MOST FINISHED MANNER, ON WOOD, BY BUTLER, MOSTLY FROM ORIGINAL 
DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS B"* THE AUTHOR, ILLUSTRATING THE 

RUINS, ANTIQUITIES, COSTUMES, PLACES, CUSTOMS AND CURIOSITIES 

OF THE 

ANCIENT AND MODERN MEXICANS. 
Price Two Dollars and Fifty Cents— Elegantly Bound and Gilt. 

This work gives a complete account of the present Social and Political Condition of Mexico ; a view of* its 
Ancient Civilization; a description of Antiquities in the Museum of Mexico, and of the Ancient Remains, strewn 
from California to Oajaca ; which are copiously illustrated. It also furnishes a record of the author's journeys 
to Tezcoco, and thiough the tierra caliente; a full account of the Agriculture, Manufactures, Commerce, Re- 
sources, Mines, Coinage, and Statistics of Mexico ; and, added to all this, is a complete view of the past and 
present history of the country ; being more replete with all interesting information concerning Mexico, than any 
work which has appeared since the days of Humboldt. The Engravings are numerous, and of the most finished 
character, highly illustrating the text, and adding greatly to the value of the work. 

" The author is a close observer of men and manners, and writes with elegance and vivacity. His descriptions 
of natural scenery, cities, ruins, and other works of nature and art, are graphic and truthful in the highest 
degree. His sketch of the history of Mexico is also a very useful compendium for those who cannot command 
larger works on the same subject. The publisher has performed his part of the work with taste and liberality. 
The book ; s handsomely printed on fine paper, and bonnd in good style. Mr. Mayer's work on Mexico will be 
read with avidity by those who have read Mr. Prescott's ' Conquest of Mexico ;' since it furnishes one of the best 
descriptions extant of the present condition of that country."— [Whig, Troy, N. Y. 

" It is a beautiful, and undoubtedly an authentic work, particularly adapted for a holiday present, and of more 
value than the light tales and souvenirs of the day." — [Courier, Boston, Mass. 

" The work before us is one of the most attractive and copious volumes which has ever been written upon this 
most beautiful city of the new world. The author's position gave him great opportunities for examining into 
everything of a curious or instructive character in that magnificent city— into its historical, literary, and business 
character— its religious ceremonies and various important public institutions, as well as the numerous antiquities 
with which Mexico abounds. The author is an acute observer, and graphic in his delineations of everything 
wnich tell under his observation. It is an exceedingly interesting work ; and, in point of interest, as well as in 
attractive style of narration, compares well with Stephens' on Central America. The work is printed superbly, 
and the numerous plates are among vhe best specimens of wood-engraving ever executed in this country."— 
[Courier, New-Haven, Ct. 

" The work before us adds another invaluable volume to the standard literature of the day ; and, as the pro- 
duction of an American gentleman, cannot fail to do honor to the nation at large, in the high estimation to which 
we feel confident it is destined abroad. The style of the author blends so admirably the entertaining with the 
instructive, that the reader is insensibly beguiled from page to page, acquiring a deep interest in the new and 
interesting details exhibited by the graphic pen, and amused and often delighted with the spirited humor of the 
narrative. There is a charming vivacity seldom met with in similar productions, and rarely, indeed, sustained 
with so much grace and ease throughout. As a descriptive writer, Mr. Mayer, in the book before us has estab 
lished a claim to the first rank ; with a quick and keen observation, an instinctive realization of the interesting 
and the new, and a taste for the arrangement— the relative positions— of his subjects, he leads us by the hand 
through the most delightful portions of this ancient and renowned country, and from every commanding emi- 
nence points out, with the skill and familiarity of a master, the minutest objects upon which the eye can rest 
with a momentary sense of gratification. We enter the palace, the church, and the private house, under the 
influence of distinct emotions, but with the same ease and satisfaction that we do the street or the market-place, 
and always find an intelligent friend at our side who anticipates our questions, and leaves nothing untold or 
unexplained, for a lingering desire to suggest."— [Sun, Baltimore, Md. 

" Altogether, it is one of the most important and instructive works that has appeared since the volumes of 
Humboldt. And it may be read with peculiar pleasure in connection with Prescott's late work on the conquest 
of Mexico by Cortez, and Stephens' Central America, as the ruins visited by Mr. Mayer have never been de- 
scribed before, and therefore furnish additional proof of the civilization and power of the race who inhabited 
the country at the time of the Spanish invasion."— [Star, Lowell, Mass. 



'Books for the People" published by J. Winchester, 30 Ann-street, New-York. 
New and Valuable Work for Schools and Libraries 



HISTORY OF EUROPE, 

FROM THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE 

FEENCH REVOLUTION IN 1789, 

TO THE 

RESTORATION OF THE BOURBONS IN 1815. 

BY 

ARCHIBALD ALISON, F.R.S.E. 

&bri&ge& from l\\z last £onbon (KMtion, 

FOR THE USE OF THE GENERAL READER, COLLEGES, ACADEMIES AND SCHOOLS, 

BY EDWARD S. GOULD. 

PRICK $135, BOUND. 



This work presents a comprehensive and perfect view of Europe during the stormy period from 1789 to 1815, in 
clear and perspicuous language, and in a beautiful style. Its publication supplies a desideratum in History, 
there being no other work of a similar character attainable by the public, except at four times the expense. Itis 
well adapted as a class-book in History for Colleges, Academies, and Schools, as well as for the general reader. 
FROM JOSEPH STORY, CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 

"It seems to me an excellent abridgment of Alison's great work, written in a clear and chaste style, presenting 
the narrative in an exact form for the general reader, and condensing the facts and materials, so as to bring them 
within the reach of all classes of persons desirous of information of that most interesting period, and justly to 
command their confidence. The work cannot fail to be extensively useful ; for few can command the leisure to 
read Mr. Alison's bulky volumes, even if the expense were no object ; and all may, as I believe, profit from an 
abridgment so completely within the reach of the means of the curious and the educated, and whose fidelity 
may be relied on." 

FROM JAMES KENT, EX-CHANCELLOR OF THE STATE OF NEW- YORK. 

"The numbers of Alison's History, as they successively appeared, I read with great interest. 1 have now 
read Mr. Gould's abridgment, and permit me to say, I think it is admirably executed: it is, indeed, one of the 
best abridgments I ever saw. The material facts are all retained, and stated in strong and perspicuous language : 
and Mr. Gould has displayed great industry and skill in preserving the substance of so great a history, and yet 
giving it in language of his own." 

FROM REV. J. M. MATTHEWS, D.D., LATE CHANCELLOR OF THE N. Y. UNIVERSITY. 

"I have examined Mr. Gould's Abridgment of Alison's History of Europe, and have no hesitation in saying 
that Mr. G. has performed his task with singular fidelity and ability. In abridgments of historical works, the 
important incidents are often so detached from each other, and from their attending circumstances, as to impair 
the connection and interest of the narrative ; and the spirit and character of the original are sacrificed for the 
sake of brevity. Mr. Gould cannot be charged with this fault. He has infused into his abridgment most of the 
excellencies which distinguish the history as written by Alison himself; and has conferred a benefit on our semi- i 
naries of learning, by bringing within their reach the substance of a work which is acknowledged to be one of T 
the most valuable histories in our language." 
FROM PROF. CHARLES ANTHON, D.D., AUTHOR OF "THE CLASSICAL DICTIONARY," ETC. 

" Mr. Gould's work appears to me, on a careful examination, to be executed with very great ability ; and 
I have not the least doubt it will make an excellent book for schools." 

FROM GEORGE D. PRENTICE, ESQ., EDITOR OF THE LOUISVILLE JOURNAL. 

" We strongly commend this abridgment of Alison's History, by Mr Gould, as an excelient and valuable ser- 
vice to the geneg-1 reader. No man can derive much benefit from the complete work, unless he is prepared to 
read it critically for it will lead those, who are not, into many, many errors. If both were offered us at the same 
price, we should take Gould's abridgment, without hesitation, in preference to Harpers' edition." 

j FROM HON. LEWIS CASS. 
" I have looked over it with great interest. I think Mr, Gould is entitled to great credit for his plan, arid the 
execution of it. The original work is too unwieldy for general use, and nothing but a reduction of size could 
have brought it within the reach of a large portion of the community." 




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